SirRoxalot
freely admits to licking rocks
Member since October 2003
Posts: 790
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Post by SirRoxalot on Nov 17, 2006 16:04:28 GMT -5
So I've gone completely over to the dark side and begun cabbing. It's rather fun!
Securing stone to dopstick is my main problem. Red wax is a nuisance to melt, and you've got to heat the stone, and seems entirely unreliable. Super glue seems to do the trick but occasionally fails and when it sticks really well, then you've got a problem. Epoxy seems fairly reliable but then there's the removal problem again; boiling water works on the non-heat-sensitive stuff but lord help you with, say, obsidian, then you need Attack, a horrible carcinogenic solvent that I hardly want to use.
Sooooo, what am I doing wrong? What are y'all using to dop?
SirRoxalot
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Post by krazydiamond on Nov 17, 2006 16:54:58 GMT -5
i use green wax and an electric dop pot with aluminum dop sticks, put them in the freezer for 20-30 minutes (longer if i forget them). remove stone and stick, place stone into the palm of your hand, most times the condensation between wax and stone will break the bond.
still a pain in the butt, especially with softer stones as they can crack trying to get them off the stick.
i bought some Attack...yeh, pretty scary warnings, so i haven't used it much, but will try on some smaller stones soon.
KD
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller 
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,494
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Post by Sabre52 on Nov 17, 2006 16:55:45 GMT -5
I use a green dop wax that comes in sticks. Heat it in my dop pot that has a couple of ledges for heating stones and it sticks real well. Rarely do I have a stone break loose as long as I degrease the rock before I use the wax. Comes off easy if you put the stones in the freezer for a few minutes and I collect and reuse the wax till it no longer works well....mel
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WarrenA
fully equipped rock polisher
Member since November 2003
Posts: 1,530
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Post by WarrenA on Nov 18, 2006 0:10:47 GMT -5
green wax
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Post by stoner on Nov 18, 2006 1:44:36 GMT -5
The main reason I never used to dop my cabs was because I disliked messing with the wax. I just started dopping my stones and I'm using super glue and an accelerator so I can start grinding almost immediately. I'm using wooden dowels and golf tees as my dop sticks and if I can't break the stone off the stick with my hands, I use a box cutter and work it around the stick to loosen the bond and then I can just break the stone away fron the stick.
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Post by rocklicker on Nov 18, 2006 8:47:15 GMT -5
I use green or dark green wax (?) and also almost never have problems with stones coming off the stick. I do what Mel does basically, but I reheat the dopped stone once it's secure just where the wax starts to remelt. I heat it until it gets shiney then let it cool slowly. Everything must be clean, including your hands.
Steve
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Post by Tweetiepy on Nov 18, 2006 9:52:34 GMT -5
I don't have a dop pot so I found an inexpensive coffee warmer to melt the green wax & the stone - some do fly off, but most hold on - I put mine only about 5 minutes in the freezer to get them off
I know different colors of dop wax melt at different temperatures, maybe the red is for something else???
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